Katarina Witt's 1994 Olympic "Robin Hood" SP

Here's a photo of Katarina Witt performing her "Robin Hood" short program at the 1994 Winter Olympics. This was the Olympics in which professional figure skaters were permitted to qualify to compete, again, as "amateurs". Witt joined Brian Boitano, Viktor Petrenko, and Jayne Torvill & Christopher Dean as former gold medalists who returned to the competition.

This program (Robin Hood) is on one of my most hated skating programs of all time. Sorry. Kat's costume was hideous- she did not need to dress like the character- and her skating belonged to another era of eligible competitions. I enjoyed her LP though; her artistry came through much better. To her credit, she skated the SP well enough to be in the last group of skaters for the LP.

Come on, already! I strongly disagree with you that Katarina’s “Robin Hood” costume was “hideous”. In my opinion, this outfit was perfect for the music and the program.

I also take exception to your criticism of Witt’s technical skills, stating her skating belonged to another era. May I respectfully remind you that Katarina won six European titles, four World titles, and two Olympic gold medals. By any measure, the woman deserves some respect.

I’ll certainly grant you that the technical aspects of women’s figure skating greatly increased after Witt left the amateur scene in 1988. Between 1988 and 1994, women added the triple lutz to their long programs as a matter of course, and skaters such as Kristi Yamaguchi landed two triple lutzes, as well as triple flips and loops. And Midori Ito and Tonya Harding had the triple axel in their arsenal.

When Katarina decided to return to eligible competition and try to win a spot on the German Olympic team, she knew she had to train extremely hard, and she knew she would not be “given” a place on the team – she had to earn it. I remember her disastrous European “Robin Hood” short program in which she missed practically every jump. Yet, to her great credit, she rebounded strongly, skated a very good long program, and qualified for the German Olympic team.

When Witt arrived at Lillehammer, she stated that she had no expectations of winning a medal. She was there because she wanted to have one more Olympic experience. Despite the fact that her short program triple combination was “only” a triple toe/double toe, she qualified for the final flight in the long program.

Come on, already! I strongly disagree with you that Katarina’s “Robin Hood” costume was “hideous”. In my opinion, this outfit was perfect for the music and the program.

I also take exception to your criticism of Witt’s technical skills, stating her skating belonged to another era. May I respectfully remind you that Katarina won six European titles, four World titles, and two Olympic gold medals. By any measure, the woman deserves some respect.

I’ll certainly grant you that the technical aspects of women’s figure skating greatly increased after Witt left the amateur scene in 1988. Between 1988 and 1994, women added the triple lutz to their long programs as a matter of course, and skaters such as Kristi Yamaguchi landed two triple lutzes, as well as triple flips and loops. And Midori Ito and Tonya Harding had the triple axel in their arsenal.

Well done, Katarina!

Your third paragraph clearly supports my statement that her technical skills belonged to another era. That does not mean she did not deserve her gold medals in 1984 & 1988, or the European titles.

A costume is a matter of taste and I do think hers was terrible. It is unnecessary for a skater to dress like a character, particularly for a woman to dress like a man. Skating is about musical interpretation, not theater. If you read my post correctly, you will notice that I did mention she made it to the final group. How is that disrespctful?

What was wrong with Katarina dressing like a man? She had done this before in her career (I downloaded an old SP where she was skating to Mozart and was dressed in breeches and a ruffled shirt). Her program may not have been as great technically as the other ladies, however Kat was very proud of her '94 SP as she said that it was the best SP she had ever skated.

I personally loved both of Kat's programs in 1994 Olympics. They were the best programs of the competition and she showed that she could sell a program without a lot of technical difficulty. Take away Nancy's and Oksana's triples and there wasn't a whole lot to their programs (though there was more for Oksana than Nancy).

A costume is a matter of taste and I do think hers was terrible. It is unnecessary for a skater to dress like a character, particularly for a woman to dress like a man. Skating is about musical interpretation, not theater. If you read my post correctly, you will notice that I did mention she made it to the final group. How is that disrespctful?

Vash

Why should it matter to you if Katarina wears pants? And why can't a woman figure skater choose to wear pants? If may be "unnecessary" for a skater to dress like a character, but if you follow the sport, you will know that many skaters do exactly that - military-theme costumes, Broadway "show" costumes, Russian "folk" costumes, Spanish costumes, "Carmen" costumes, etc.!

Where Have All The Flowers Gone?

As much as I loved the Robinhood SP, I preferred Where Have All The Flowers Gone? as a program. The music was beautiful, and I personally felt that she had the best edges and footwork in the whole competition (Yuka Sato and Josee Chouinard were other women in the competition who had better edges and spins than the women who medalled). I wish every year that someone would use that music again so that I can hear it, or that Kat would perform it one more time. Or, that it will be released in an album somewhere.

The message that program had came across so beautifully. It would be a fitting message, especially in today's world.

Kat's costume was hideous- she did not need to dress like the character

Noone needs to dress in a specific way (besides staying within the rules). But I don't see why she MUST not do that? I like it if skaters think about the music and get in character one way or the other (there is not only ONE way). And I don't like it if skaters always wear the same kind of costume no matter what they skate to. It is part of the impression I get of a routine.

Why should it matter to you if Katarina wears pants? And why can't a woman figure skater choose to wear pants? If may be "unnecessary" for a skater to dress like a character, but if you follow the sport, you will know that many skaters do exactly that - military-theme costumes, Broadway "show" costumes, Russian "folk" costumes, Spanish costumes, "Carmen" costumes, etc.!

Please reread my post. I did not object to 'pants'. I objected to dressing as the character, and I did object to a woman dressing as a 'man' (Robin Hood). Would you like to see Scott Hamilton dress as a lady just because he skated to a feminine music? As I mentioned a costume is a matter of taste and I disliked Kat's Robin Hood costume. You seem to take it personally.

As much as I liked her 'Where have all the flowers gone' program, she did not skate it that well in the 94 Olympics. The disappointment showed in her face. I thought she deserved better marks for artistry than what she received, but I have to disagree that she skated better than the ladies that medaled. Nancy, Oksana, and Chen Lu all skated great and they were better than Katarina in that competition, and it wasn't just about the triples. Katarina had more 'heart' in her program- she wanted to make a statement and she did. It does not necessarily mean her skating was better than the medallists.

Noone needs to dress in a specific way (besides staying within the rules). But I don't see why she MUST not do that? I like it if skaters think about the music and get in character one way or the other (there is not only ONE way). And I don't like it if skaters always wear the same kind of costume no matter what they skate to. It is part of the impression I get of a routine.

I agree.. Michelle Kwan dresses similar costumes every year, she even has the similar choreography to go with them year after year...